Engraved in Flesh

Lost in the Storm

Mook was groaning in pain. He was stuck in darkness as he waited, listening to the world around him. Memories of the time he spent with Aru flooded his mind. Then, he heard her frantic voice screaming out to him.

Then his eyes opened.

He was cold and weak. There was blood on his shirt, his body extremely sore. It was dark in the room he was at. He heard water outside of the room, and then it hit him: he was on a ship. The events of the night before flooded into his mind, every memory weakening his moral and heart. As he examined the room where he was, he finally realized what was happening. He had been taken by the Japanese.

Oh, how he prayed that they didn't get his precious Aru.

~                                ~                                  ~

Aru woke up with a raging headache. She groaned as her head throbbed in pain. As her eyes fluttered open, she realized that she wasn't at the beach anymore. Shielding her eyes, she let her eyes adjust to the change of light. She noticed that she was in a white room, laying on a white bed. It only took her a moment, but she realized that she was at a hospital. As she rested on the bed, she tried recalling what had happened. She had sworn that she was on the beach doing something with someone.

The door to the hospital room began to open, bringing Aru back to reality. A nurse came into the room. She smiled kindly at Aru and asked her simple questions to check on her health. She checked her vitals and told her that she would be back with some food. As Aru careful laid back down on the bed, the door opened once more.

Mrs. Kim was worried sick. She cooed as she hugged Aru, asking about how she was doing.

"Mom, why am I here?"

Mrs. Kim's eyes slightly widened at her daughter's words, not expecting her to question why she was in the hospital.

"Aru, Darling, don't you remember? Rose and the boys found you on the beach. You were laying in the sand all alone, you wouldn't respond to them."

Aru nearly choked at the words. As Rose and the boys walked in, Aru nearly fell to ground trying to stand up. Levi quickly stopped her from hitting the ground.

"Aru, are you alright?"

"Take it easy Aru, you're still healing."

"M-Mook!"

All of a sudden, the expression on the faces of Rose and the boys darkened. Only Aru and Mrs. Kim didn't get upset at the mention of his name.

"We know, Aru. Once we find him, he'll pay."

"W-What?"

"He abandoned you. Don't worry, we'll avenge you-"

"N-No!"

The four had shocked expression at the sudden outburst. They watched as Aru sat up on her bed.

"Mook didn't abandon me! He would have never dreamed of it! He was kidnapped by Japanese men! They took him away! I...I couldn't save him..."

The four watched with saddened eyes as Mrs. Kim held Aru, who was shaking and on the brink of tears. She kept mumbling how she was useless as she covered her eyes, weeping. They all comforted the girl until she was calm once again.

The nurse came back with food for Aru. Aru didn't realize how hungry she was until her stomach grumble upon seeing the meal. She peacefully ate as Rose and her mother took the two seats in the room, the boys standing around. As she ate, the nurse explained what was going to happen.

"We'll let you rest, only occasionally checking in on you for check ups. You were out there for a while, so we just need to make sure nothing happened to either of you. We plan on keeping you here for one more day, then you guys will be free to go home. When you go home, take it easy and rest. It's the best option for you bunch, okay?"

Everyone but Aru seemed to not have heard everything that the nurse had said. That's when she noticed that they didn't listen to the nurse. They were too focused on her to worry about the plan that the nurse and doctors came up with. As the nurse began to walk out of the door, Aru cried out to her.

"Excuse me? Miss?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Nurse Jayul Oh. Is there something you need, Miss Kim?"

Aru nodded as the nurse politely faced her, giving Aru her upmost attention. Aru hesitated to ask, but she found the courage to do so.

"You mention 'you guys?' What did you mean by that?"

At her question, the other five in the room finally seemed interested in Nurse Jayul's choice of words. Nurse Jayul seemed genuinely surprised. Her expression quickly melted into a mix of awkwardness and happiness.

"You guys don't know? Well, this will be an interesting reveal."

Nurse Jayul cleared her throat and spoke the words. If Aru wasn't already sitting down, she would have fallen to her knees. Her mother was in genuine shock as she sat there with her hand on her chest. Rose nearly choked on her water while boys almost fell from their spots.

This explained everything. The sickness, constant state of being tired, and her want for more food. She thought that she was just sick, but now she knew that she wasn't. She stayed in a stunned silence for the rest of the visit. She laid down to sleep when her mother and friends left her. She let out a shaky sigh as the nurse's words were stuck on repeat in her mind. As she closed her eyes and drifted to sleep, the words played on last time before letting her rest.

"Aru Kim, you're pregnant."